The High Street Hill Cookbook

Sweets (inspired by Holiday Cookie Swap) 1. Grandma Dolphin’s Apple Cake 2. Swedish Tea Balls 3. Butterhorns 4. Beacon Hill Cookies 5. Butterscotch Crunchies 6. Salted Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookies 7. Traditional German Stollen 8. Holy Triumvirate Cookie Base 9. Almond Clusters 10. Butter Crunch 11. Spice Cookies 12. Ambrosia 13. Date Bread 14. Blueberry Cake 15. Bulgarian Cheese Pie 16. Homemade Granola

Soups (inspired by Midwinter Soup Stroll) 17. Easy Mulligatawny Soup 18. Leek, Celery, and Potato Soup 19. HSHA Bacon & Potato Soup

Appetizers and Mains (inspired by Spring Annual Meeting and Summer Picnic) 20. Nurit’s Magical drink 21. Spinach Dip 22. Spicy Grilled Quesadilla 23. Vegan Fettuccine 24. Miso- Pasta 25. Country Captain Chicken

1 Grandma Dolphin’s Apple Cake

Ingredients 1/2 cup butter 1 cup white sugar 1 egg beaten 1/2 milk 1 and 1/2 cups white 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon 1 and 1/2 cups shredded apples

Preparation Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine softened butter and sugar. Add beaten egg and milk. In a separate bow sift the flour, baking soda and cinnamon together. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Once combined, fold in the shredded apple pieces. Put batter in a greased and floured 8x8 square pan (or something similar) and bake for 30-40 mins depending on your oven. Take out and let cook on a drying rack before serving (about 20 mins). Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Lena Berc

2 Swedish Tea Balls Ingredients 1 cup shortening 3 tablespoons powdered sugar 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon 1 cup ground nuts 2 cups flour

Preparation Shape into balls and bake at 325o for 20 minutes; roll in powdered sugar, let cool and role in powdered sugar again. Enjoy! Helen MacDonald

3 Butterhorns These make lovely little tea cookies and are a nice accompaniment to Christmas Cookie Collections. I first learned to make them from the mother of a college friend that I visited during the holidays out on Long Island in 1973.

Ingredients Measure into a large bowl: 2 C. sifted flour ½ lb. butter Cut butter into flour with finger tips Add 1 egg yolk ¾ C sour cream and mix well When blended, shape into ball. Sprinkle with flour. Wrap well in plastic wrap. Chill in frig. for several hours. While chilling, combine the nut mixture: Nut mixture ¾ C sugar 1 tsp cinnamon ¾ C chopped nuts (pecans or walnuts)

Preparation Sprinkle board or counter-top lightly with flour. Remove dough from frig. and divide into 4 parts. Roll out one portion at a time on board making a circle. Sprinkle dough with ¼ of the sugar-nut mixture. Cut into 12 wedge-shaped section. Roll up each wedge, starting with the widest portion Place rolls on lightly greased cookie sheet and bake @ 375 for 25 – 30 min. Repeat with each of the four sections Peggy Campion

4 Beacon Hill Cookies

I’ve no idea how the name came about, but my mom gave me this recipe decades ago. They are always a hit, and probably the easiest of all the cookies I make at Christmas time.

Ingredients 1 Cup chocolate bits 2 egg whites dash salt 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 tsp vanilla 1/2 tsp vinegar 3/4 cup chopped walnuts

Preparation Melt chocolate bits over water (double boiler or equivalent). Beat whites with salt til foamy. Gradually add sugar til stiff peaks form. Beat in vanilla and vinegar. Fold in chocolate and walnuts. Drop on a greased cookie sheet (or parchment paper) and bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes. Remove from sheet immediately. Liz Craig-Olins

5 Butterscotch Crunchies

This recipe came from a book that I earned from the local newspaper's "Happy Time" essay page when I was in 2nd grade. You earned points for writing essays to the paper, and the book I picked when I earned enough points was a "Kids in the Kitchen" cookbook. There were lots of 70's recipes that I am glad went out of fashion (I'm not a big fan of carob!), but this dessert/cookie is really easy for kids to make (no baking necessary!). I've been making it the same way for 35 years and it's still a hit at every party I bring it to :-)

Ingredients 1 bag of butterscotch morsels ½ cup peanut butter 4 cups corn flakes

Preparation Place corn flakes in a mixing bowl and set aside. Tape waxed paper or parchment paper to baking sheets and have them ready. Place some of the morsels and the peanut butter into a bowl and microwave on half-power for one minute. Stir. Add remaining morsels, microwave again for one minute on half-power, stir. Repeat until the mixture is soupy. It’s ok if the morsels aren’t completely melted, but do NOT let it boil (2 to 3 times in the microwave should do it). Pour mixture over cornflakes and GENTLY fold it in with a rubber spatula. Be careful not to crumble to cornflakes too much. Spoon whatever size cookie you like onto the waxed paper and place in refrigerator to cool.

Tips Don’t try to use organic peanut butter – it’s too runny and won’t gel correctly. You’ll get the best results with plain, old-fashioned unhealthy peanut butter like Skippy or Jiff. 1 cup of corn flakes weighs about 1 oz., so a 12 ounce box of corn flakes will make exactly 3 batches of Butterscotch Crunchies. The Plantes

6 Salted Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookies

Adapted from Modern Israeli Cooking by Danielle Oron Time: 45 minutes plus 12 hours refrigeration Yield: 12 to 18 cookies

Ingredients 4 ounces butter at room temperature ½ cup tahini, well stirred 1 cup granulated sugar 1 large egg 1 egg yolk 1 tsp vanilla extract 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour or matzo cake meal (see note) ½ tsp baking soda ½ tsp baking powder 1 teaspoon kosher salt 1 ¾ cups/230 grams chocolate chips or chunks, bittersweet or semi-sweet Flaky salt like fleur de sel or Maldon [I use kosher salt]

Preparation In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, [Paddle attachment! What’s that? I use regular beaters.] Cream butter, tahini, and sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add egg, egg yolk, and vanilla and continue mixing at medium speed for another 5 minutes. Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder and kosher salt into a large bowl and mix with a fork [Sometimes I sift. Sometimes I don’t.] Add flour mixture to butter mixture at low speed and until just combined. Use a rubber spatula to fold in chocolate chips. Dough will be soft, not stiff. Refrigerate at least 12 hours; this insures tender cookies. When ready to bake, heat oven to 325 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or nonstick baking mat. Use a large ice cream scoop or spoon to form dough into 12 to 18 balls. [Schiro: These are HUGE cookies! But I like the texture better when they are large.] Place the cookies on the baking sheet at least 3 inches apart to allow them to spread. Bake 13 to 16 minutes until just golden brown around the edges but still pale in the middle to make thick, soft cookies. [Schiro: I wonder if he uses a convection oven. It takes at least 17 or 18 minutes in

7 my oven, and it’s tricky to remove cookies without having them break.] As the cookies come out of the over, sprinkle sparsely with salt. Let cool at least 20 minutes on a rack. Note: to make this recipe kosher for Passover, substitute matzo cake meal for the all-purpose flour. [Technically, baking soda and baking powder are allowed during Passover.] Susan Stir

8 Traditional German Stollen

Hometown Friend's Grandmother’s

Ingredients 1 C milk, 1/2 C sugar, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 pack yeast 1/4 C warm water 5 C sifted flour 1 C candied citron 1 C slivered almonds 1 lemon rind 1 C raisins 2 eggs beaten 3/4 C softened butter 1/4 C melted butter 1/4 tsp nutmeg 1/2 tsp cinnamon 2 tbsp. sugar

Preparation Scald the milk and add sugar and salt. Let cool to lukewarm. Dissolve yeast in warm water and add to milk. Add 1 cup of the flour and whisk smooth. Let rise at 85o until double in bulk (30 min?). Stir in citron, nuts, lemon rind, raisins, eggs, soft butter, nutmeg, and 3 C of the flour. Lightly flour a counter space and knead in the last cup of flour until dough is quite elastic. Shape dough into two ovals 9x6x1/2 and brush with melted butter. Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Make crease down the center and fold over. Fold into crescent shape and seal edges with fingers. Brush with melted butter and cover with wax paper and clean towel. Let rise until double in bulk. Bake at 350o for 45 minutes until golden brown. Anthony Flint

9 The Sweet Batch Holy Triumvirate Cookie Base

My son Nat and I post our bakes almost daily on Facebook and Instagram and soon“Sweet Batch Bakery” was founded. This is our cookie base for the main three drop cookies, a bastardized recipe from Lauren Chattman’s Mom’s Big Book of Cookies. You can start with this base and add either chocolate chips, or dried fruit, or peanut butter or unsweetened coconut flakes. See below for proportions. We use a half-recipe, which is what I’ve given you. Ours makes about 12, depending on how much dough you eat beforehand. The dough is amazing but I worry about food poisoning, so I learned about heated flour and egg substitutes. We heat-treat our flour to 160 degrees, 90 seconds, and we use pasteurized egg product rather than regular eggs.

Ingredients chocolate chip, peanut butter, or oatmeal: 1 heaping cup of flour, heat-treated (heat it in microwave for 90 seconds until it is 160 degrees.) ½ tsp baking powder ½ tsp baking soda ½ tsp salt 1 stick of butter, melted ½ cup packed brown sugar ¼ cup white granulated sugar ½ tsp vanilla 1 serving of pasteurized egg product (like Egg beaters)

For chocolate chip, add ¾ cup chips to the dough For peanut butter, add ½ cup pb to the dough For oatmeal, add 1 ½ cup oatmeal (not instant) to the dough. You can also add ¾ cup raisins, or chopped dried apricots, or chopped dried figs. For coconut, add ¾ cup to the dough.

Directions Oven at 350 degrees. Combine the dry ingredients, and then add the wet and beat until smooth.

10 Drop golfball-sized lumps onto a parchment-covered cookie sheet. Space them at least 2”. However, if they run together, all you have to do is divide them with a knife and you will have square cookies, which is awesome. Keep checking on them when they’re in the oven. You want to take them out when the good cookie smell is strongest, and when you can see a darker ring of color around the edges. The surface should be just dried, not obviously wet. The crucial time to check is around 8 minutes. Every oven is different, so just go by sight for doneness. Gingerly touch a cookie top to make sure it is mostly firm. Pull the parchment gently off the cookie sheet and let the cookies settle right on the parchment on the counter. Nat Batchelder and his Sue Chef, Sue Senator, of the Sweet Batch Bakery

11 Almond Clusters

These crispy little treats are extremely easy and super delicious.

Ingredients 1 1/4 C sliced almonds 6 Tbsp sugar 1 egg

Preparation Whisk egg and sugar. Mix in almonds. Drop by spoonfuls onto parchment. Bake in 325 degree oven for 15-17 minutes. Liz Craig-Olins

12 Butter Crunch Following is a recipe I make every Christmas to share with neighbors and friends. It was given to me by a fellow teacher about 30 years ago!! It never gets old!

1 cup brown sugar 2 sticks butter 12 oz. chocolate chips Saltine crackers Finely chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Line a 15 1/2” by 12” cookie tray with tin foil and grease the foil. Cover the tray with saltine crackers in rows.

Melt the butter and sugar together in a saucepan and boil for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Spread the butter-sugar mixture over the saltine crackers and bake for 5 minutes.

Remove tray from oven and sprinkle the chocolate chips over the whole surface. As the chips melt, spread them evenly with a knife or spatula.

Sprinkle chopped walnuts over the tray.

Place tray in freezer. When hard, break the Butter Crunch candy into pieces. (Keep in freezer until ready to use.)

Candy packaged in holiday tins or bags makes a wonderful gift to neighbors and friends!

One tray fills 4-5 small gift bags.

Merry Christmas!

Joanna Kennedy

13 Spice Cookies

This recipe is from the cookbook Jerusalem. Best spice cookies I’ve ever had!

Ingredients 3/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp currants 2 Tbsp brandy scant 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 1/2 tsp best-quality cocoa powder 1/2 tsp baking powder 1/4 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp each ground cinnamon, allspice, ginger, and nutmeg 1/4 tsp salt 5 oz good-quality dark chocolate, coarsely grated 1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature 2/3 cup superfine sugar (regular ok if you can’t find it) 1 tsp vanilla extract 1/2 tsp grated lemon zest 1/2 tsp grated orange zest 1/2 large egg 1 Tbsp diced candied citrus peel

Glaze 3 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice 1 1/3 cups confectioners’ sugar

14 Preparation Soak currants in the brandy for 10 minutes. Mix together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, spices, salt, and dark chocolate. Mix well. Put butter, sugar, vanilla, and lemon and orange zest in a stand mixer fitted with the beater attachment and beat to combine but not aerate much, about 1 minute. With the mixer running, slowly add the egg and mix for about 1 minute. Add dry ingredients, followed by the currents and brandy. Mix until everything comes together.

Gently knead the dough in the bowl with your hands until it comes together and is uniform. Divide the dough into 1 3/4-oz chunks and shape each chunk into a perfectly round ball. Place the balls on 1 or 2 baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing them about 3/4 inch apart, and let rest in the fridge for at least 1 hour. Preheat oven to 375. Bake the cookies for 15-20 minutes, until the top firms up but the center is still slightly soft. Remove from the oven. Allow to cool for only 5 minutes, and then transfer to wire rack. While cookies are still warm, whisk together the glaze ingredients until a thin and smooth icing forms. Pour 1 Tbsp of glaze over each cookie, leaving it to drip and coat the cookie with a thin, almost transparent film. Finish each with 3 pieces of candied peel placed at center. Leave to set and serve, or store in an airtight container for a day or two. Liz Craig-Olins

15 Ambrosia, a Southern Dessert

This very simple dessert belies expectations. Something magical happens. Ambrosia was always served with homemade fruitcake, rich and moist with dates and pecans, after Christmas dinner at my Grandmother’s house. There are many recipes for this Southern dessert; most are abominations. Serves 8

Ingredients 4 large navel oranges About ¾ cup of sweetened shredded coconut 8 Maraschino cherries for garnish

Preparation Peel the oranges, remove as much pith as possible, divide the sections and cut into bite-sized pieces, making sure all juices are saved. Add the coconut to the bowl of oranges and mix together. Chill before serving with one cherry added to each serving as garnish. Do NOT add sugar or any other ‘embellishments.’ (An added comment about fruitcake. I think most who don’t like fruitcake have never had good fruitcake. Fruitcake for next Christmas should be made now, occasionally splashed with good Bourbon or brandy and carefully rewrapped and stored in a cool - not cold, place. Delicious!) Frances Shedd-Fisher (Georgia native)

16 Date Nut Bread This recipe for Date-Nut Bread was published in the Globe in 1965.

Let stand for 10 minutes or so: 1 cup of very strong boiling coffee 1 cup chopped dates 1 tsp. baking soda 1 tablespoon butter Then add the following mixture, stirring all together well: 1 cup sugar 1 1/2 cups flour 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup finely chopped nuts dash of salt 1 beaten egg Bake in buttered loaf pan at 350 deg. for one hour (or less) until top is firm. For best results put a cup or pan of water in the oven while the bread is baking. (This is essential!) This bread will keep in the refrigerator for a long time. Sally Coughlin

17 Mrs. Kent's Blueberry Cake

Ingredients 1 1/4 cup blueberries 1 cup sugar 1/2 cup butter 2 eggs 1/2 cup light cream 2 cups flour 2 tsps. baking powder 1 tsp. vanilla

Preparation Set the oven at 325 degrees. Lightly grease a 13 x 9 cake pan. Mix the blueberries with 4 tbs. of the flour and set aside. Cream together the sugar and butter then add the eggs, one at a time and mix well. Alternate adding the cream and the mixture of flour and baking powder to the butter/sugar mixture. Add the vanilla. Gently fold in the blueberries. Pour into the pan and sprinkle with 1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg on top. Bake for 35 minutes, but test for doneness. Nancy Peabody

18 Banitsa (Bulgarian Cheese Pie)

Banitsa is a Bulgarian cheese pie. It’s a dish that can be eaten for or as a snack, hot or cold. It’s a favorite dish in my house which the kids love and help to make. In , Banitsa is commonly made on Christmas and New Year’s Eve with good luck charms added. The charms may be small pieces of dogwood branches with a certain number of buds, coins, or handwritten fortunes wrapped in foil.

Ingredients 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons olive oil 3 eggs 2 cups plain whole milk 12 ounces cheese (Greek, Bulgarian or any other high quality feta) 1/3 cup all purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt if feta is not salty 1 pound phyllo sheets (you can find it in Stop & Shop) 8 ounces unsalted butter melted 1/3-1/2 cup carbonated water Honey for drizzling

Preparation Preheat oven to 350 degrees Grease 2 (9 inch) pie pans or springform pans with 1 tablespoon olive oil each

In a medium bowl, beat eggs. Whisk in yogurt until smooth. Crumble in feta. Mix in flour, baking soda, and salt if using. (you can also use polenta flour instead of regular flour)

In a small bowl, stir 1/4 cup olive oil with melted butter.

19 Lightly dust work surface with flour. Unroll the phyllo sheets with short end facing you. Gently brush the top sheet with the butter mixture. Add 2-3 tablespoons of the feta yogurt in a thin line across the short side nearest you. Tightly roll up the phyllo sheet to the other short side. Place seam-side down with one end in the center and spiral around in a circle. Repeat with remaining phyllo sheets, continuing to wrap them around the center until you reach the edge of the pie pan. Fill the other pie pan.

Drizzle the top of the pies with remaining butter mixture and lightly with seltzer water to barely moisten.

Bake in preheated oven until the top is golden brown, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Allow to cool 10-20 minutes before drizzling with honey and serving.

Yana Piralkova

20 Homemade Granola

I make this about once a week unless my boys are home in which case I make it every other day. I use different combos of nuts & seeds including pumpkin seeds, Chia seeds, flax seeds, pecans, walnuts, slivered almonds.

Preheat oven to 350o Combine 4 cups oatmeal 2 cups of nuts and seeds (your choice) 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix 1/2 cup melted coconut oil 1/2 cup of maple syrup 1 teaspoon vanilla Add wet ingredients to dry. Mix until everything is coated. Spread out on parchment lined rimmed cookie sheet. Bake for 24 minutes Let cool for at least 45 minutes Lift parchment paper to pour granola into airtight container for storage. Enjoy! Michele Sommer

21 Easy Mulligatawny Soup

In a large heavy pot sauté in olive oil: One large sweet When soft, add: Crushed to taste (I like a lot) Chopped celery (appx. ¾ cup) Chopped carrots (appx. ¾ cup) Chopped bell pepper (red, orange or yellow) One bunch chopped cilantro Three large or six medium-size tomatoes Fennel seeds (appx 2 tbs.) Curry powder to taste (appx. 2 tbs.) Add two cups red lentils (rinse them; soaking is unnecessary) Add a generous amount of stock (your choice), bring to a boil and then simmer slowly. A spoonful or two of chutney adds a touch of sweetness. Stir often to make sure the beans don’t burn. Add stock as needed to achieve the right consistency. I cook mine in a pressure cooker, after all the vegetables have softened. It takes about eight minutes. When the cooker cools and the lid comes off I might cook a few more minutes and add more liquid to get the right consistency. Makes 6 – 8 servings. Enjoy! Patricia Herzog

22 Leek, Celery and Potato soup

There are many similar recipes for Leek and Potato Soup; this one was a NY Times recipe I modified to suit my taste. Pretty tasty, I think. Six servings Ingredients 2 or 3 strips bacon (for optional garnish) 2 T bacon drippings or butter or olive oil 2 large leeks, white and light green parts only, sliced/chopped 2 cloves garlic, chopped 1 bunch celery, leaves included, sliced/chopped 1 large russet potato, peeled and cubed ¾ teaspoon dried 2 bay leaves ¼ cup white wine or dry sherry 4 cups reduced sodium chicken broth or vegetable stock 1 cup water ½ cup or more chopped fresh , plus more for garnish 1/3 cup cream

Preparation: Sauté bacon strips in soup pot until crisp, if using bacon. Set bacon aside to crumble later for garnish. If using bacon fat, remove all but about 2 tablespoons from pot. Heat the bacon drippings, butter or olive oil and add the chopped leeks, celery and garlic. Season lightly with salt and freshly ground pepper, and sauté over medium-low heat until vegetables are tender, 5-10 minutes. Add wine to deglaze and, once wine has mostly evaporated, add thyme, bay leaves, chopped potato, chicken or vegetable stock and water. Stir and bring to steady simmer and cook for about 20 minutes, or until potatoes are very tender. Remove bay leaves, add chopped parsley and, using immersion blender, puree soup thoroughly. Taste and add salt if needed. If serving immediately, add the cream, stir and reheat before ladling into heated bowls. If not serving all immediately, twirl 1 tablespoon of cream into each serving just before serving. Garnish with crumbled crisp bacon, if using, and a little chopped parsley. Notes: Density of soup is personal preference; if prefer thinner soup, add another cup of broth or water before reheating to serve. (If soup is too thin using 5 cups of liquid, your vegetables were too small!) Frances Shedd Fisher

23 HSHA Bacon & Potato Soup

Ingredients: 2 ½ lbs gold potatoes peeled and diced into pieces no larger than 1” (this was about 6 Large potatoes for me/1.15kg) 6 strips (uncooked) bacon cut into small pieces 3 Tablespoons butter ⅓ cup all-purpose flour 42g 1 medium yellow onion chopped (about 1.5 cup/200g) 3 large garlic cloves minced 4 cups chicken broth 945ml 2 cups milk 475ml 2/3 cup heavy cream 155ml 1 ½ teaspoon* salt 1 teaspoon ground pepper 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon ancho chili powder** 2/3 cup sour cream 160g Shredded cheddar cheese, chives, and additional sour cream and bacon for topping optional

Procedure Place bacon pieces in a large Dutch Oven or soup pot over medium heat and cook until bacon is crisp and browned. Remove bacon pieces and set aside, leaving the fat in the pot. Add butter and chopped onion and cook over medium heat until are tender (3-5 minutes). Add garlic and cook until fragrant (about 30 seconds). Sprinkle the flour over the ingredients in the pot and stir until smooth (use whisk if needed). Add diced potatoes to the pot along with chicken broth, milk, heavy cream, salt, pepper, and ancho chili powder. Stir well. Bring to a boil and cook until potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork (about 10 minutes). Reduce heat to simmer and remove approximately half*** of the soup to a blender (be careful, it will be hot!) and puree until smooth (this is about 5 cups of soup, but just eyeballing the amount will be fine. Alternatively you can use an immersion blender.). Return the pureed soup to the pot and add sour cream and reserved bacon pieces, stir well. Allow soup to simmer for 15 minutes before serving. Top with additional sour cream, bacon, cheddar cheese, or chives. Enjoy!

24 * I recommend starting with a more reserved amount of salt and then adding more as needed, the amount of salt needed will vary depending on the type/brand of broth you use. ** If you haven't used ancho chili powder before, I recommend starting with 1/4 teaspoon and then taste-testing before increasing to 1/2 teaspoon if you like the taste. *** If you want a completely creamy soup you can puree all of it, just puree in batches, about half of the soup at a time. I prefer my potato soup with actual chunks of potatoes and prefer to puree just half of it Matt Hyatt

25 Nurit’s Magical drink Sizes up nicely if you keep the ratio. It won’t last long at a post-Covid party but for now, a pitcher will last a while, so pre-make a pitcher except the last step. When ready to drink, just add the ice and cherry.

Ingredients 1 oz vodka 3/4 oz Cointreau Squeeze one lime 1/2 oz of POM 2 oz of citrus juice (grapefruit or blood orange work well)

Preparation Add ice and a maraschino cherry with some syrup from the cherry jar. Marianna Yang

26 Spinach Dip

This dip is best prepared the day it is going to be eaten. Not great made day before – spinach loses its color.

1 pkg frozen chop spinach 1 can chopped water chestnuts 1 pkg. Knorr dried vegetable soup 1c. Hellman’s mayo 1c. plain yogurt (not Greek - I use no fat, organic) Fresh lemon juice (I use a lot) Salt and pepper Maggi seasoning (a liquid salt seasoning) for top For serving: Melba rounds (crunchy crackers) Celery

Thaw spinach. Squeeze all water out of it. Blend dry soup to a powder in food processor/chopper. Blend water chestnuts to a mush in processor. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Adjust seasoning to taste. (Lemon should be first thing to hit the pallet. You shouldn’t be able to taste the mayo.) Serve with little celery sticks and Melba rounds (I like the whole wheat ones). Cissa Campion

27 Robert Rabin’s Spicy Grilled Quesadilla

Robert Rabin is the owner of the prestigious Chillingsworth restaurant on Cape Cod. Serves 8 as an appetizer, 4 as a light entrée.

Ingredients 1 large 2-3 pickled jalapeno chilis 4 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives or scallions 1 ½ cups grated jack or mild cheddar cheese 4-6 ounces cooked or smoked chicken, turkey, duck, or wild (optional) ½ cup sour cream Salt and fresh 8 flour tortillas

Preparation for the filling Cut tomatoes in half widthwise. Wring out all the seeds and liquid and finely dice the tomato flesh. Finely chop the chilis and herbs. Coarsely grate the cheese. If using poultry, cut it into matchstick slivers. If using wild mushrooms (shiitakes make a good choice), brush them lightly with olive oil, bake or grill until soft, and cut into matchstick slivers. Combine these ingredients in a bowl with the sour cream and stir to mix, adding salt and pepper to taste. Preheat the grill Just before serving, spread four tortillas with the tomato mixture. Place second tortillas on top to make thin sandwiches. Grill the quesadillas over high heat, 2-3 minutes per side, or until lightly browned. Cut each one into wedges and serve at once. Susan Schiro

28 Vegan Fettuccine

Ingredients 3 large carrots (peeled; sliced) 1 small onion (2 ½ to 3 in diameter, diced) 2 lbs zucchini or summer squash (about five small ones, sliced) 8 or 9 mushrooms (2 to 2 ½ in diameter, sliced) 1 or 2 garlic cloves (life is nothing without garlic) just enough olive oil to cover bottom of an 8” to 9” covered saucepan a few shavings of ghost pepper (or as much as you can tolerate) a sprinkle of Pasta: 1 lb-box of fettuccine

Directions Veggies: Basically, everything is sauteed in a little olive oil, over medium heat, starting with the onions & carrots. While they’re cooking, slice all the zucchini squash (2 or 3 min). Add to the pan. Wash & slice the mushrooms (3 to 4 min), then sprinkle some oregano into the pan, add the mushrooms; mixing everything together. Heat 2 or 3 min more, until mushrooms are cooked, but the zucchini/squash is still crisp. Pasta: Cook as package instructs for al dente. Makes 4 to 6 servings, depending on the diners’ appetites. Don’t forget to accompany the meal with a nice wine. Ed Ginsburg

29 Miso-Mushroom Pasta

7 ounces dried pasta 4 ounces mushrooms (any kind, I use a few varieties) 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 1 teaspoon sherry vinegar, or white wine vinegar (optional) 2 teaspoons red miso paste 3 tablespoons butter, softened 5 garlic cloves (or fewer, if you prefer)

1/2 cup heavy cream 1 stalk of scallion, finely sliced 1 pinch salt 1 pinch black pepper

Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Season generously with salt until it's nearly as salty as the sea, then add dried pasta. Cook the pasta until just under al dente (a minute less than on its package directions), then drain the pasta and set aside. Chop or pull apart the mushrooms into large, bite-sized chunks. Then, heat a large skillet over high heat with a tablespoon of vegetable oil, and sauté the mushrooms for 3-5 minutes until nicely browned. When they are done, add a little sherry vinegar to the pan with the mushrooms, give them a little toss, and set aside. It’s best to cook the mushrooms in 2-3 batches and not overcrowd the pan to allow them to brown evenly To start on the sauce, whisk the red miso paste and butter together in a small bowl until it comes together to form a smooth, fluffy paste. In a medium saucepan, add the minced garlic and a tablespoon of oil, and stir-fry over medium heat for 30 seconds to a minute until fragrant. Add in the sautéed mushrooms. Then, add in the miso-butter mixture and cream, and bring this sauce to a boil, stirring gently. Finally, add the cooked pasta into the sauce, and stir until the pasta is well coated. Salt it to taste, and cook for 1-2 minutes until the pasta is al dente, then remove from the heat. Portion the pasta into two bowls, and top with sliced scallions and freshly cracked black pepper Karen Kraut

30 Country Captain Chicken

Smothered in sauce of seasoned tomatoes— Four servings

Ingredients Flour for dredging chicken Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste About !/2 teaspoon dried thyme (or experiment with herb of your choice) 2 slices bacon About 1 Tbsp butter if not using bacon drippings 4 large bone-in chicken thighs, preferably skin-on (or mixture of chicken parts) 1 small (or ½ medium) Spanish onion (yellow onion), coarsely chopped 1 small green bell pepper, chopped ½ cup chopped celery 1 clove garlic, minced 1 rounded tablespoon curry powder Pinch of nutmeg 1 14-ounce can best quality chopped tomatoes, or in summer, 2 ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped. (Drop tomatoes in boiling water for a few seconds; peel will come right off.) About ¼ cup currants (Substitute raisins if currants not available.) About ¼ cup coarsely chopped roasted peanuts (Optional garnish).

Preparation Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Combine the flour, salt and black pepper and dredge chicken. In a fair-sized skillet (big enough to hold all the chicken), cook the bacon until crisp and set it aside, or remove bacon and drippings and wipe pan out before melting butter for browning chicken on both sides. Transfer the browned chicken to a plate and drain off all but 1 tablespoon of the fat in the skillet. Add the chopped onion, bell pepper, celery, garlic, curry powder, thyme and currants to the skillet and sauté over low heat until soft. Take care the vegetables don’t brown. Stir in the tomatoes and their juices, bring to a simmer and cook until saucy. Taste and add salt and pepper if needed. Spread half the tomato sauce in the bottom of a casserole large enough to hold the chicken in one layer. Arrange the chicken on top. Pour the remaining sauce over and around the chicken. Cover

31 tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 35 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes. Garnish with the crumbled bacon and chopped peanuts. Serve on a bed of cooked long-grained white rice (not sticky rice!) with homemade pickles or chutney. (Some cooks garnish with sliced toasted almonds and dried shredded (unsweetened) coconut. Chopped cashews would also be good.) Add a green salad or a green vegetable, and you pretty much have a meal! Frances Shedd-Fisher

32